The Unbreakable Barrier
by RainbowNinjaUnicorn279
Summary: I started with nothing - not even my memories. How can I hope to have a life? But then the one thing I feel connected to is cut off from me. Can love triumph over war? Or are some barriers really unbreakable? This is my story. Please R&R.
1. Allegiances and Prologue

**This is a new story of mine. This is ThunderClan and the others, but it's a while in the future, so the clans have completely different members. Here are the allegiances:-**

_**THUNDERCLAN**_

**Leader:**  
><strong>Emberstar <strong>– ginger tabby and white tom

**Deputy:**  
><strong>Snowflower<strong> – white she-cat  
><em>Apprentice: Icepaw<em>

**Medicine Cat:**  
><strong>Bouncetail<strong> – brown tabby tom  
><em>Apprentice: Deerpaw<em>

**Warriors:**  
><strong>Ravenclaw<strong> – black smoke tom  
><em>Apprentice: Tigerpaw<br>_**Desertstorm** – ginger tabby tom  
><strong>Nighttalon<strong> – black tom  
><strong>Frostfire<strong> – white she-cat  
><strong>Darkleaf<strong> – black she-cat  
><em>Apprentice: Bumblepaw<br>_**Ratheart** – dark brown tabby tom  
><strong>Proudclaw<strong> – large brown tabby tom  
><em>Apprentice: Clawpaw<br>_**Tinybrook** – small brown tabby tom  
><strong>Greysmoke<strong> – grey smoke tom  
><strong>Silverlight<strong> – light grey tabby she-cat  
><strong>Stripecloud<strong> – grey tabby tom  
><em>Apprentice: Shadepaw<br>_**Specklefur** – mostly black tortoiseshell she-cat  
><strong>Flameheart<strong> – mostly ginger tortoiseshell she-cat  
><strong>Russetface<strong> – ginger tabby tom  
><em>Apprentice: Lightpaw<br>_**Reedburn** – black smoke tom

**Apprentices:**  
><strong>Bumblepaw<strong> – grey tabby tom  
><strong>Icepaw<strong> – small white she-cat  
><strong>Deerpaw<strong> – dark brown she-cat  
><strong>Clawpaw<strong> – light grey tabby tom  
><strong>Tigerpaw<strong> – brown tabby tom  
><strong>Shadepaw<strong> – dark grey she-cat  
><strong>Lightpaw<strong> – white she-cat

**Queens:**  
><strong>Duskflower<strong> – dark grey she-cat, mother of Emberstar's kits: _Foxkit (light grey tabby tom with blue eyes) and Patchkit (dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes)  
><em>**Splashfrost** – black and white she-cat, mother of Nighttalon's kits: _Swiftkit (black and white she-cat with amber eyes) and Skunkkit (black and white she-cat with blue eyes)  
><em>**Morningstream** – cream tabby she-cat, pregnant with Greysmoke's kits

**Elders:**  
><strong>Crowbird<strong> – black tom with blue eyes, the oldest cat in the clan  
><strong>Hawktail<strong> – brown tabby tom, mute because of a torn tongue  
><strong>Lakeshine<strong> – grey smoke she-cat

**...**

_**SHADOWCLAN**_

**Leader:**  
><strong>Viperstar<strong> - mostly ginger tortoiseshell she-cat

**Deputy:**  
><strong>Redeyes<strong> - albino tom

**Medicine Cat:**  
><strong>Bluestream<strong> - blue-grey she-cat

**Apprentices:**  
><strong>Mousepaw<strong> - brown spotted tabby tom  
><strong>Darkpaw<strong> - black tom

**...**

_**WINDCLAN**_

**Leader:**  
><strong>Lionstar<strong> - golden tabby tom

**Deputy:**  
><strong>Oakfrost<strong> - dark brown tabby and white tom

**Medicine Cat:**  
><strong>Galestep<strong> - light brown tabby tom

**Apprentices:  
><strong>**Seapaw** - grey tabby she-cat with blue eyes

**...**

_**RIVERCLAN**_

**Leader:**  
><strong>Cherrystar<strong> - mostly ginger tortoiseshell she-cat

**Deputy:**  
><strong>Beartooth<strong> - brown tabby tom

**Medicine Cat:**  
><strong>Sorrelflare<strong> - mostly ginger tortoiseshell she-cat

**Warriors:**  
><strong>Adderfang<strong> - ginger tabby tom  
><strong>Sparktail<strong> - mostly ginger tortoiseshell she-cat

**Apprentices:  
>Berrypaw<strong> - cream tabby tom  
><strong>Frozenpaw<strong> - white tom

**...**

**I've only put important cats from other clans, so you don't have as many to remember (I don't think that really helps though). These allegiances are actually based just after Chapter 1. Just thought you'd want to know that.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own warriors, but I do own all characters in this (unless referring to a cat in the time of Firestar). Heh, I'm bad at remembering these. But still, do I look like four people to you?**

**Me 2: Yes.**

**Me 3: What a stupid question. You need your brain checked.**

**Me 4: Lol...**

**Me: SHUT UP!**

**Enjoy~**

* * *

><p>The Dark Forest was always dark and spooky, but in this part of it, it was even more so. It was the darkest part of the Dark Forest, with tall, dominating trees, and curling shadows milling in the corners. It was not a place that would make a cat feel welcome, more one that discouraged them to go anywhere nearby. Very few cats, not even those who loved the dark, dared venture there.<p>

Except for a single she-cat.

The brown tabby seemed reluctant and fearful as she moved through the trees. She didn't appear to want to be there. She moved hastily until she arrived outside one of the few landmarks within the Dark Forest – a cave.

It was impossible to see anything that was in the cave, but if one stood nearby they could feel the hateful and evil presence within it. The she-cat shivered.

"I-I have your message," she meowed nervously.

An evil chuckle came from within the cave. A voice followed it, a voice that dripped with cruelty and malice, "It is amusing to see you so timid," it said, "What does the message say?"

The she-cat sighed shakily before replying. "It s-says "How about upon the earth?"," the she-cat reported.

The presence within the cave was silent for a few moments before replying. "And do you know what this message means?" it asked.

"N-n-no," the she-cat meowed hastily.

"Good," the voice said smoothly, "Very good. Now I want you to fetch a cat – any cat – and send them to me. I want them to send the next message."

"But I-I could easily send the m-message myself. Why do I h-have to fetch someone e-else?" the she-cat asked.

"Do not question me!" the voice snarled, "You fetch another cat because I say so. And anyway, I did not think you would want to spend all your time delivering messages."

Her fur fluffed out in fear. "B-but it's more interesting than doing nothing," she explained.

"But it is to my understanding that you are not doing nothing," the she-cat looked shocked as the voice continued, "Brooklarch, do not make the mistake of thinking I do not know what you are planning."

She blinked, stunned, before speaking, "W-will you help?" she asked hopefully, her eyes gleaming with the possibilities.

Silence.

"Perhaps," it replied after a long time, "Now go, and do what I have asked."

Brooklarch nodded briskly before running away from that horrible place.

* * *

><p><strong>So there is the prologue. Dark and spooky as always. What do you guys think was in the cave? Tell me your theories in a review! (hint hint)<strong>

\/ \/ **PLEASE ****REVIEW** \/ \/


	2. I join ThunderClan

**Here is chapter 1! Thank you to Dirtspots-Chan and Dawn-of-the-Wolf for reviewing! Yes, Russetface is a bit of a weird name but I like it.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own warriors. I have remembered this twice in a row! This is a miracle! :O**

**Enjoy~**

* * *

><p>For a while I just sat there, staring across the lake. It was dawn and the morning sun lit up the lake and the surrounding land. It was quite beautiful.<p>

I frowned to myself. How had I gotten here? I couldn't remember anything before this. Before I had much chance to ponder this, I heard a set of thumping paw steps rushing up behind me.

"Intruder!" A voice yowled at me, before I was knocked over by a brown tabby cat that was much larger than me. I feebly struggled beneath the cat, but my attempts weren't working. My eyes met a pair of blazing amber eyes.

"What are you doing in ThunderClan territory?" the cat, which I now realised was a tom, demanded furiously.

"Proudclaw! She's barely more than a kit! Let her go!"

The tom let me go at the sound of the she-cat's voice. I scrambled to my feet. Proudclaw was staring at with hostility. A little further away was a white she-cat, the one who had spoken. Beside her was a younger white she-cat that appeared to be quite small for her age.

"She doesn't smell of ShadowClan," the older she-cat commented, "Or any clan."

"What's your name?" Proudclaw demanded.

"I-I don't know," I replied honestly.

"How can you _not know_?" Proudclaw meowed in disbelief.

"I can't remember," I explained, "I can't even remember how I got here…"

"Lies!" Proudclaw snarled, "You-"

"Proudclaw!" the older white she-cat meowed incredulously, "She's only about six moons old! Go easy on her," she meowed, "We should take her back to camp."

"Fine," Proudclaw meowed curtly, clearly not happy with the decision.

I followed the three cats into the trees. They seemed to know where they were going, whilst I felt so lost. I didn't know anything about myself. In fact, I wasn't even sure what I looked like. I knew I was mostly white, but that was about it.

I was astonished to find out what their 'camp' was. It was a large rocky hollow, with many cave in it. It seemed unnatural somehow, but the cats living inside it were completely at home. The hollow was beaming with life as cats moved around their daily business.

However, this seemed to slow down when I was led into the clearing. Cats stopped and stared at me, both curiously and suspiciously. I felt nervous and stared at the ground. I was led across the clearing to a ginger tabby and white tom that was talking to a dark grey she-cat. When he noticed us approaching he looked at me curiously.

"Snowflower, who is this?" he asked, directing the question at the older white she-cat. I realised that he was probably in charge, judging by the way he spoke.

"I don't really know, Emberstar," she replied, "She can't remember anything."

He looked at me in surprise. "Really?" he asked.

I nodded.

"I'm not sure she's telling the truth," Proudclaw cut in. I bristled slightly in irritation.

"Have some sympathy for her," the dark grey she-cat meowed, "She's only little. Don't assume that just because she isn't from ThunderClan that she is different from any other cat."

"Duskflower has a point," Emberstar meowed, "I think we should let her join, if you are alright with that." He looked at me enquiringly.

"But… what am I joining?" I asked in confusion.

"ThunderClan," he explained, "It is one of four clans at the lake. I can't tell you all about them now, but if you stay I'm sure you'll learn in time."

I still felt uncertain. I knew next to nothing about these 'clans'. But what choice did I have? I had nowhere else to go. Right at that moment, staying in – what was it called? – ThunderClan was my best option.

"Okay," I agreed.

"Good," he smiled at me, "I'll just hold a meeting and make you and apprentice. I'll also be making three other cats apprentices as well. What a nice coincidence." He was a very warm-hearted cat. I felt quite pleased about my decision… until I saw the way Proudclaw was looking at me.

It was clear from his expression that he didn't want me to join. In fact, he looked as if the first thing on his mind was to chase me away from his territory. I wondered fearfully what would've happened if Snowflower hadn't been there to save me. I shivered.

Emberstar leaped up onto a high ledge. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the highledge for a clan meeting!" he called.

_Interesting summoning_, I mused.

The cats of ThunderClan all gathered in the clearing. I glanced around nervously, wondering where I should stand. Duskflower had gone off to a cave that smelt of milk. Snowflower had gone and sat very close to the ledge, making her appear more important than the others. And there was absolutely no way I was sitting anywhere near Proudclaw.

Thankfully, someone came to save me. The white she-cat who I had seen earlier, although hadn't actually spoken to, came over to me.

"Come sit with me," she said. She led me over to where another young cat – a grey tabby tom – was sitting. He looked at me curiously.

"Who's this Icepaw?" he asked.

"You'll find out soon, Bumblepaw. The meeting's about to start," Icepaw replied. Bumblepaw turned to looked up at the highledge.

"Today is a special day," Emberstar began, "Three kits have reached their sixth moon. It is time for them to become apprentices. Clawkit, Tigerkit, Shadekit, come forwards."

So he was starting with the other cats first. I watched as the three cats moved into the centre of the circle. The first was a light grey tabby tom with blue eyes that appeared to be the leader of the litter (Clawkit?). The second was a brown tabby tom with amber eyes, and had to be Tigerkit. The third was a black she-cat, probably Shadekit.

"Clawkit, from this day forwards, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Clawpaw."

The change of name had so significance to me, but the newly named Clawpaw stuck out his chest in pride.

"Proudclaw, you will mentor Clawpaw. Although it is not normally allowed for kin to mentor kin, this case was specially requested, and with good cause. I know you can pass on all your skills to Clawpaw."

My first instinct was to feel sorry for Clawpaw. Who would want Proudclaw as a mentor? But as Clawpaw padded over to his new mentor he was almost glowing with pride. Maybe Proudclaw was only nasty to cats that weren't part of ThunderClan. Clawpaw and Proudclaw touched noses, something that was obviously part of the ceremony thing.

"Tigerkit, from this day forwards, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Tigerpaw."

Tigerpaw didn't show off as much as his brother, but he looked pleased.

"Ravenclaw, you will mentor Tigerpaw. You are one of the most experienced warriors in the clan, and I trust you can pass on what you know to Tigerpaw."

Ravenclaw turned out to be a black smoke tom. Tigerpaw gleefully padded over to him and they touched noses.

"Shadekit, from this day forwards, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Shadepaw."

Shadepaw's eyes sparkled.

"Stripecloud, you will mentor Shadepaw. You learned much from Hawktail," Emberstar nodded to an aging brown tabby tom, "And I hope you can pass what he taught you to Shadepaw."

Shadepaw padded over to Stripecloud, a grey tabby tom with particularly noticeable stripes. They touched noses.

"Now before I end this meeting, I would like to introduce everyone to…" Emberstar trailed off, unable to finish, as he didn't know what my name was, "Well, she can't remember anything, so I'm not really sure what her name is." He flicked his tail in my direction.

All eyes fell on me. I immediately felt extremely nervous, like I was about to be interrogated.

"Who is she?"

"How can she not remember anything?"

"Is she from one of the other clans?"

"Where did you find her?"

The clan spilled out their masses of persisting questions, and Emberstar had to order them to be quiet. He looked at me expectantly.

"Well what can you remember?" he enquired.

"Um… I remember standing at the edge of the lake, but I have no idea how I got there," I explained nervously, "It was only a short time before you guys found me." I decided that 'you guys found me' was a better way of putting it rather than 'Proudclaw called me an intruder and attacked me'. It seemed a bit more appropriate.

"That's not very convincing," a dark brown tabby tom said. He was standing next to Proudclaw, and was astonishing similar to him (actually I think they were brothers), "She could be a spy from another clan."

"What sort of clan would send a cat as young as her to spy, Ratheart?" Snowflower stepped in and defended me, much to my thankfulness.

Proudclaw snorted next to Ratheart, "ShadowClan," he said.

"She doesn't smell of any clan," Snowflower argued, "And before you ask, she doesn't smell of anything that hides your scent."

Both Ratheart and Proudclaw twitched their ears in irritation. By now I was convinced that they must be related in some way.

"Are we taking her in?" a black tom put in, "I don't think we should. I mean, the other clans will think we are weak for taking in lots of rogues and loners. And rogues and loners don't exactly prove to be that good. You remember Mottlepelt."

The mention of this 'Mottlepelt' seemed to ruffle the fur of many cats. One ginger tabby tom stepped forwards.

"Mottlepelt was a good and strong warrior. Better than you, Nighttalon, at any rate," her growled.

"Of course you would say that," Nighttalon argued, "You're his son, after all…"

"Quiet," Emberstar commanded, "I have already made my decision. We will allow our newcomer to join."

No one argued with him, although some cats appeared to be annoyed at this decision – Proudclaw, Nighttalon, and Ratheart included.

Emberstar turned to me. "Come forwards."

I padded into the centre of the circle, butterflies in my stomach.

"From this day forwards, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Lightpaw."

Lightpaw? That was a nice name.

Emberstar scanned the cats, deciding who my mentor would be. "Russetface," the ginger tabby who had defended Mottlepelt blinked in surprise, "You received many skills from Darkleaf," Emberstar acknowledged a black she-cat, "And have become a great warrior. I know you can pass on your skills to Lightpaw."

Russetface seemed quite flattered by this. I realised that I was now meant to touch noses with him. I padded over to him and did so. He didn't appear to dislike me, thankfully. In fact, he paid little attention to me. He stared up at Emberstar with a frown on his face, as if wondering why Emberstar had made him be my mentor.

"The meeting has come to an end," Emberstar announced.

I wondered what my life in ThunderClan would be like.

* * *

><p><strong>So there you go!<strong>

**I know that I used the name Lightpaw in my other story, but the name ties in with the plot in this story. And I can't exactly go and change it in my other one.**

**Tell me what you think of the characters so far: Emberstar, Proudclaw, Snowflower, Russetface, Nighttalon, Ratheart, Duskflower, Clawpaw, Tigerpaw, Shadepaw, Icepaw, and Bumblepaw! (wow, I only realised how many characters there were when I listed them...)**

**Hope you liked it! Update coming ASAP!**

\/ \/ **PLEASE REVIEW **\/ \/


	3. I explore ThunderClan territory

**Here is chapter 2!**

**You guys will be happy to know that this chapter is really long! (2,554 words!) I didn't expect it to be so long, but this is how it turned out. (for those of you that think this isn't long, you should see some chapters in other stories I wrote. They can be really short.)**

**Enjoy~**

* * *

><p>After ceremony everyone went back to what they were doing. I was so astonished – it all seemed so organised. How was I meant to know what I should do?<p>

I noticed the other three new apprentices in a huddle together nearby and I padded over to them. I felt a little shy. What if they rejected me like some of the other cats in the clan?

They noticed me approach them. Clawpaw stepped forwards.

"Go away! We don't want your rogue diseases near us!" he hissed, his words spiked with venom. I almost flinched. This wasn't what I wanted to happen at all.

"That's mean!" Shadepaw cut in, "Ignore Clawpaw. He's just a bossy furball! We're happy to have you with us! Another she-cat for me to talk to!" I sighed in relief. Shadepaw seemed really nice. Clawpaw's ear twitched in irritation the same way that Proudclaw's did. For a moment I was puzzled, but then I remembered that Emberstar had said they were kin. Maybe that was where he got his mean attitude…

"I can't wait to start training," Tigerpaw commented, "I'm going to be the best warrior in the clan!"

"No you're not! I am!" Clawpaw retorted, "I'll prove it to you!" The two toms began to wrestle.

Shadepaw rolled her eyes. "Toms," she sighed.

"You guys ready for training?"

Ravenclaw had approached us, along with Proudclaw, Stripecloud, and Russetface. Shadepaw and her brothers nodded. I nodded too, although I felt nervous. How difficult would training be? What if it turned out that I was so rubbish at it that I was kicked out from ThunderClan? What would I do then? I wish I could feel as laid-back as the others. It didn't help that Proudclaw was glaring at me.

"Good," Ravenclaw replied, "Come on."

The four cats – warriors I think they were called – led us out of the rocky hollow. Shadepaw, Tigerpaw, and Clawpaw followed enthusiastically. I followed with less glee, fearing the worst. They didn't have to care about how well they did, simply that they had fun.

I had been in the forest before, so it was nothing new to me. I thought, that seeing as Shadepaw, Tigerpaw, and Clawpaw lived here, that they would have been in it too. However, they all showed great curiosity in their surroundings.

"Haven't you guys been here before?" I asked them.

"We have," Shadepaw replied, "But this time we get to explore it _properly_, without Silverlight watching over us constantly!" I assumed that Silverlight was their mother.

I realised that, in a way, I was more mature than the others. Perhaps it was because I had lost my memory, allowing me to have a different outlook on the world. Or maybe they were surprisingly immature for their age.

I had lost track of time. We had arrived at a river. There was a foreign scent coming from the other side.

"Across there is WindClan territory," Ravenclaw told us, "For those of you who don't know anything about WindClan," he cast a meaningful glance at me, "They live on the hills and hunt rabbits. They are well known amongst the clans for their speed. This river marks the border, and runs all the way to the lake. Let's follow it there."

It was clear to me that older cats commanded over younger ones – Ravenclaw was leading the entire group. It wasn't that he was really old, but there were telltale signs that he was more experienced than others – mostly in his eyes. He led the group downstream.

I fell in step beside Shadepaw. Tigerpaw and Clawpaw were behind us, with Stripecloud padding behind them to watch for danger. Ahead of us were the other warriors.

"I must be so weird for you, not knowing who you are," Shadepaw commented, "What's it like, not being able to remember anything?"

I shrugged. I didn't really trust Shadepaw enough to be completely honest with her. "What's it like being able to remember things? I can't really answer that question until I get my memory back."

"But what if you don't get your memory back?" Shadepaw asked me.

I had no idea what to say to that. I hadn't considered it before. I hadn't had time to consider it. Thankfully, I was saved from have to answer because we had just arrived at the lake.

"As you can see, there is the lake," Ravenclaw meowed, "I assume you have all been to the lake?"

We all nodded.

"Good," Ravenclaw smiled, "Now, we're going to make our way along to the ShadowClan border."

"What about the stuff in the middle of the territory?" Clawpaw asked.

"We'll explore that another day," Proudclaw spoke for the first time, "Right now we're going to show you the boundaries so you know where you can go and where you can't. So you know where your enemies are."

Clawpaw smiled and nodded, understanding. Ravenclaw gave a curt nod and led the way across the lakeshore.

I ended up walking with Shadepaw again. "So…" she said, "What were we talking about again?"

I didn't want to go back to our conversation about my memory. "I can't remember," I lied.

"Wasn't it… I can't remember either. Oh look, there's Bumblepaw and Icepaw!" Shadepaw indicated the two other apprentices that had just come out from the trees to the shore.

"Where are your mentors?" Proudclaw demanded to Bumblepaw and Icepaw, "You shouldn't be out on your own!"

"I'm here," a black she-cat I didn't know padded out from the trees, "And Snowflower is busy organising patrols. Proudclaw, don't always assume that apprentices are up to no good."

Proudclaw bristled slightly, but didn't reply.

"So how are they doing, Darkleaf?" Ravenclaw asked to break the tension. Bumblepaw and Icepaw padded over to us whilst the older cats had a discussion.

"Hey guys! Having fun on your first day out?" Bumblepaw asked us.

"Yeah!" Shadepaw replied enthusiastically, "Although we haven't done much. Just looked at borders."

"Nothing much does happen on your first day," Bumblepaw agreed, "But when you start hunting and fighting it gets interesting."

"Go away!" Clawpaw growled, "We don't want to talk to you."

Bumblepaw looked offended and Shadepaw blinked in shock. "That's a mean thing to say, especially since Bumblepaw is our cousin! Bumblepaw, ignore him, he's just being a grumpy furball!" Shadepaw meowed.

Clawpaw bristled. "But dad said-"

"When will you realise that what dad says isn't necessarily true?" Tigerpaw asked, "He said that Tinybrook is a weakling just because he's small, but I don't think he is."

"Well you clearly have no brains. Tinybrook _is_ a weakling," Clawpaw argued.

"Don't insult my dad!" Bumblepaw growled, "I bet he is stronger than you."

"That is because I have only just become an apprentice, Bumblepaw," Clawpaw meowed curtly, "And Tinybrook is an experienced warrior. However, I don't think his experience is much use."

"I'm confused. Who is Tinybrook and who is your dad?" I asked, hoping to interrupt the argument.

"But out of things that don't concern you!" Clawpaw growled.

Shadepaw ignored him. "Ratheart is our father and Tinybrook is our uncle, and also Bumblepaw's father. And Icepaw's father." Shadepaw glanced meaningfully at Icepaw, who was clearly shy. She hadn't said a word the entire time.

I felt a shiver run through me. Ratheart was their father? No wonder Clawpaw was so horrible. Like father like son, clearly. But Tinybrook was their uncle? How could Ratheart insult someone who was either his brother or mate's brother?

"Come on Bumblepaw and Icepaw. We have some hunting to do!" Darkleaf called. Icepaw dashed away. Bumblepaw glared at Clawpaw before following.

"That was really rude, Clawpaw!" Shadepaw hissed, "You can be such a mousebrain sometimes! You don't say to a cat's face that you don't like them. That's mean!"

I wasn't really listening to what Shadepaw was saying. I was still digesting the fact that Ratheart, of all cats, was their father. I could understand it with Clawpaw – in attitude he was everything like him. But the other two were too… nice. Perhaps they had a really nice mother.

"Come on," Ravenclaw ordered. We followed him and the others further along the lakeshore. Yet again, I ended up walking with Shadepaw.

"See what I mean about toms? Clawpaw can be really mean sometimes. He's nice to cats he likes, but he can be really horrible to cats he doesn't," Shadepaw glanced at me, "You haven't seen his nice side, have you? He doesn't seem to like you that much. I think he doesn't like you because Ratheart and Proudclaw don't. He seems to copy them a lot."

I found that I didn't know what to say without offending Shadepaw – I had no desire to say nice things about Clawpaw, Proudclaw, or Ratheart. So instead I nodded and changed the subject. "So can you tell me about the clan? I don't know very much about it," I meowed.

"Oh, well, I better tell you about the different ranks," Shadepaw said, "Firstly, there is the leader. I'm sure you know what a leader is, so I won't explain anything about it. Our leader is Emberstar, as you may have already guessed. Then there is the deputy. The deputy is basically the second-in-command. They order cats around. Our deputy is Snowflower, who I know you've met."

"And are the rest of the cats warriors or apprentices or kits?" I asked.

"No, you're forgetting about the medicine cat," Shadepaw told me, "The medicine cat heals injuries and cures diseases. Our medicine cat is Bouncetail, who is also my uncle. His apprentice is Deerpaw."

"How many uncles do you have?" I asked, "From the sounds of things, you have loads."

Shadepaw smirked. "I have five uncles," she replied, "But that's because both of my parents have no sisters."

"Well that's probably more than I have, I think," I pointed out.

"I guess so," Shadepaw agreed.

"Here is the ShadowClan border," Ravenclaw announced. We had arrived roughly where the ThunderClan trees turned into pine trees, obviously where ShadowClan territory was. I yucky smell hit my nose, and it wasn't coming from fox dung.

"That hideous smell belongs to the pieces of crowfood that call themselves ShadowClan," Proudclaw growled, "Remember it well, for that is the smell of our most hated enemies."

I felt a shiver run through me. ShadowClan didn't sound very nice. But then again, that was _Proudclaw's_ description of them. They were probably just like ThunderClan.

"The ShadowClan border runs up through the forest. I don't really think we have much need to show you it – you will know it's there from the foul stench," Ravenclaw meowed, "But we'll show you it anyway, just so you know where it is."

Ravenclaw led the way into the forest again. Once again I fell in step with Shadepaw.

"So, besides the leader, deputy, and medicine cat, there are the warriors (cats who fight and defend the clan), apprentices (young cats training to be warriors), kits (cats too young to train), queens (she-cats that are expecting or caring for kits) and elders (older cats who are retired). Does that explain everything else for you?" Shadepaw asked me.

"Yeah… Ah, mouse dung!" I cursed. I had just stepped on a thorn, and now it was embedded in my paw.

"What's happened?" Ravenclaw asked. The patrol had stopped, and everyone was staring at me.

"Lightpaw has a thorn stuck in her paw," Shadepaw told them.

"Should I take her back to camp so Bouncetail can have a look at it?" Russetface asked Ravenclaw.

He nodded. "I doesn't matter that much that she doesn't get to see all of the border," he said.

Shadepaw blinked. "Aw, but…" she trailed off, realising that I would have to go.

"See you later," I said brightly to try and cheer her up.

"Yeah, see you later," Shadepaw meowed.

"See you later," Tigerpaw meowed as well.

I heard Clawpaw mutter something under his breath, although I have no idea what he said. Whatever it was, it was probably to do with me. It also wouldn't have been very nice.

The patrol padded away. Russetface turned and led the way towards camp. I turned and followed him, limping. Every step on my paw made me wince, so I had to walk without it touching the ground. It meant that I couldn't walk very fast, so we progressed slowly through the woods. Suddenly a question popped into my head.

"Russetface, who is Mottlepelt?" I asked.

He stared at my in confusion for a moment, and then sighed. "Oh, of course, you don't know him because you've only just joined…" he meowed, "Um, Mottlepelt was my father, as Nighttalon kindly pointed out earlier."

"Was?" I queried.

"He died in battle when I was only an apprentice," the ginger tabby explained, "And now most cats think he was weak, especially since he was a rogue that joined. But he wasn't. He definitely wasn't. WindClan are just a bunch of murderers, that's all."

I could hear the pain in his voice, and decided not to press the subject any further. "There are four clans at the lake, right? So what is the other clan?" I asked, changing the subject.

"RiverClan. They like to eat fish and are the only cats that swim. They're mousebrains," Russetface meowed. Now that he wasn't talking about his dad, he seemed to be quite friendly.

In our journey back to camp, we got quite deep in conversation. I found him easy to talk to. He explained to me the warrior code, and he told me about clan traditions. It was weird, how organised the clans were. But then again, they had been around for a long, long time, according to Russetface.

We arrived back before the others did. Russetface led me across the clearing, past cats that looked at me as if I was pathetic. I sighed. _Just because I wasn't born in the clans, doesn't mean I'm not as loyal and skilled as a clan cat_, I thought to myself.

Russetface led me into a cave that smelled of strange plants. I assumed it was the medicine cat den. Inside were some moss and a pool of water. There was also a crack in the wall where the scent of plants was strongest. Oh, and there was also a cat sorting out plants.

Bouncetail was a brown tabby like his brothers, but there was something about him the made him different. Hopefully it was his personality. Bouncetail looked up at us.

"She stepped on a thorn," Russetface explained.

Bouncetail looked at me. "Ah, so you're Lightpaw! I was out collecting herbs when you arrived, so this is the first time I've seen you," Bouncetail meowed cheerfully, "Now, hold still so I can pull the thorn out."

I stayed still as asked, and Bouncetail gripped the thorn in my paw with his teeth. When he pulled it out, I yelped in pain. Why were thorns so sore?

Bouncetail then got some cobwebs and put them on my paw. "They should stop the bleeding. Don't go stepping on anymore thorns!" he meowed with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"I'll try not to," I replied.

I then left the medicine cat den with Russetface. So far, my time at ThunderClan was going okay.

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><p><strong>So there you go. Hope you liked that! Tell me what you think of the characters in a review!<strong>

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